This week’s Journal features a cover story about the Eureka human body suspension scene by our own Ryan Burns. Entitled “Hooked,” the issue is moving out to newsstands now and will hit the Web tonight at midnight.
Here’s a video that Burns and the Journal’s Andrew Goff produced about a human body suspension event at Empire Squared a couple of weeks ago. As the intro said: Not for the squeamish.
This article appears in Best of Humboldt 2010.
When I lived in Seattle this was quite the rage in underground goth clubs. It’s weird to see without strobe lights and NIN playing in the background.
You are all disgusting people.
What’s up with your souls!
Sick. It’s getting hard to shock I guess. Obviously this person wants attention. It is sick and disgusting. Are there no boundaries for the Journal. You are enabling and rewarding sick behavior. I heard the author say he was half grossed out and half fascinated. He must be pretty creepy himself.
I dont know Carol, I saw a movie when I was 5, I think it was a hollywood block buster in 1970, it was – A MAN CALLED HORSE.
Think there are deeper items afoot here.
The NCJ has made a compelling case for the return of the outhouse…so that there can be a useful purpose for the NCJ!
she won’t share her last name, but her face is in full view, i think daddy can figure it out. this is the grossest thing i have ever seen, yuk.
You people are wimps. Don’t tear down MY good time because you are squeamish cowards.
As a cultural mythologist, I suspect the underlying ritualistic aspect of Kat’s performance is rife with metaphors for our consideration. Whenever social culture swings (pun intended) in any given direction, there is likely an initiating push from the opposite direction of similar velocity and ferocity.
Both hidden and visual displays of piercings, tattoos, cutting, and other flesh markings certainly are not new. The question to which they are a response is, “What is at the opposite side of Kat’s swing that the ritual has come into being?”
A parallel subtext of the story needs more consideration than the text itself. There is a pendulum under there.
Gee, it’s OK if it’s a Native American ritual – Vision Questing – etc. Yes, there are deeper issues here.
I am shocked!
Shocked, I tell you!
HOOKS into Terrrence. Magnum suspended from the ceiling for its last gig!!!!
Well, if you like it or not this story has created opinions on both sides of the fence….isn`t that what journalism is all about,to give people something to talk about? Good job Ryan ! ! !
Those worried about their kids seeing this maybe oughta be more worried about their kids growing up to be sheltered, ignorant, narrow minded wimps…like all the sheltered ignorant narrow minded wimps of today were raised. Their sense of safety and concern is so ridiculously overblown as to do more harm than good.
i’m guessing those of you who aren’t troubled by this cover image don’t have kids . . .
I was not at all pleased to be in the position of having to explain to my 3 and a half year old daughter the image chosen for your cover. Maybe if my children were older I would not be so disgusted by the decision to use this cover but there is quite a difference between a 13 year old seeing that photo and a 3 year old. Sorry if I don’t want my preschooler, who is not yet able to fully understand such a thing – especially any sort of symbolism, thinking it’s okay to shove hooks through her skin and hang from a ceiling. Oh, but, yes, I suppose I am attempting to raise a “sheltered, ignorant, narrow minded wimp”.
It is reassuring that all of these concerned parents are focusing their energy on blogging. It takes away from the time they could be raising their children to be judgmental douche-bags like mommy and daddy. (Yes, heterosexist assumption.)
haha, good point notabreeder…how many hours per day do the children of these prudes see their parents staring blankly at a computer screen?
The children may not notice. I imagine they themselves are on a laptop, iPhone, Droid or whatever newfangled technology is most current. To think they may see something that their parents are “not at all pleased by” on the interwebs. Face it breeders. You made a human. Oops! You may unfortunately have to engage them in challenging conversations. You may have to teach them how to exercise their judgment – particularly when it comes to things that could hurt them physically, emotionally or financially at some point in their lives.
For our parents on the blog the following is a list of topics you may want to avoid but will inevitably address with your children at some point:
Sex
Drugs
Rock & Roll
Human Suspension (Thank you Ryan Burns! You rock!)
The impact of my bullet points were lost by the formatting of this blog. I changed my mind. Curse the NCJ! Damn you Burns and your hippie periodical!
Re Celeste: I’d be more concerned about my 13-year old reading it than I would my 3-year old. A 13-year old is more likely to be influenced (as a way to rebel from Mom & Dad, to think it’s cool, any number of other reasons) whereas a 3-yr old is going to think it’s icky and painful, and you as parent can both reassure and dissuade in whatever terms are appropriate, and your 3-yr old will believe you.
Fortunately my own daughter is 25 and not into self-mutilation.
In a way ya gotta thank all the puritans for responding. Who;da thunk there were so many ready at the helm? Keep that hope alive, puritans…it’s good to see the fire still burning now and then.
If your 13 yr old volunteers at Camelot – 4-H Trails program in Trinidad, you better be ready to explain it.
Your 13 yr old might be volunteering her Saturdays – and she is going to recognize “Kat’s” face. Pure and wholesome this is not.
Rose is gathering the torches and pitchforks.
Maybe she’s sweet and sane in a larger context, but in the story Kat comes off like a narcissic loser with Daddy issues. And the anti-“breeder” crusaders are real assholes with issues of their own. If you’re so confident in the awesomeness of this human suspension bullshit, you wouldn’t need to go on the attack to defend it. My 4-year-old is more mature.
And, with luck, won’t grow feeling compelled to impale himself.
One more thing – just cause the writer keeps throwing adjectives about athleticism in there doesn’t make it so and it’s an insult to all the women who actually use their bodies to run, play soccer, softball, whatever. You know, stuff in which injury isn’t the point.
What business is it of yours what she does with her body?
Not what she’s done with her body, but what they’ve done with our Journal…. Golly, maybe they’ll cover Club Risqué (Imps?) and the fuck scene next! How shocking! And important! And entertaining! Not…
How dare you imply that we didn’t already cover that years ago.
An early Burns smash.
Confidential to “anti-breeder crusader”: Save it for Craigslist.
So much for not wanting her dad to know about it! God, what an idiot. And of course, those who find this ridiculous and even a bit revolting are “prudes” and “puritans” – what a riot!
Lost here is the fact that there are so many IMPORTANT things the NCJ is NOT covering–the numerous homicides commited by “law enforcement”. The frequent harassment of the homeless, the destruction of their property, by “law enforcement”. The turning of the courthouse into a police state with rent-a-thugs and unhealthy scanning machines. The pharmawhore that runs the Humboldt County “Health” Department, blowing taxpayer funds telling people to take dangerous “vaccines”, blowing more money on ads re. depression so more people can be drugged rather than spending that money on counselors that could actually help those in need. The failure of Bass or Neely to bring any jobs to the area. Gallegos’ persecution of the schoolteacher in Fortuna when it was obvious from the start he didn’t have a case–and yet he put her on trial a second time. On and on…
I think it is very unfortunate that the journal would choose to publish a topic as disturbing as “hooked” when there are so many other positive topics/events that could have taken its place. This is what our world is coming too. Anything shocking and repulsive that people can comeup with will replace any academic achievements, positive local activities, and other family oriented topics in our journals and newpapers. Whether you have kids or not, if last weeks article was not completely revolting to you, then you need serious psychological help, as does the journal.
Wow! The video is even better than the article . . . not that the article was not good–it was excellent.
thanks Kat . . . and thanks Ryan for writing about it.
Only in Humboldt would a suspension fetishist wear slobby old jeans and a tie dyed tank top for her performance. Geez, how sloppy!
I am rarely in Eureka, and so I had no idea how many “Hooked on Bass” signs I saw there this week… ok, you know where this is going… Was that NCJ cover a plug for the Hooked on Bass campaign? 😉
OUCH!